Deadline 21st January – Register your lobbying activity

January 12, 2016

There’s nothing like a deadline to inspire action!

Maybe it’s the former journalist in me but I work best when to a deadline so I am quite partial to working against the clock (I accept this is both a strength of mine but also an annoyance for those who know and work with me!).

The first submissions for the lobbying register are due on January 21st so I’ve been working on behalf of Fuzion to compile our own submissions of activity on behalf of clients.

I’ve also been dealing with our various clients in relation to how and whether they are involved in lobbying and if there’s an onus on them to submit their own reports. (It’s comforting to see I’m not the only one who works on a ‘needs must’ basis.)

The clients range from charity to childcare, legal to education and each of their queries, knowledge and attitudes to the register is different – some have registered as a ‘ticking the box’ exercise, another wants to leverage it for brand awareness, another was unsure as to whether they may be exempt from the register while a fourth client has an interesting scenario whereby Government officials engaged and approached them in relation to their service. What do they do?

It’s interesting to see how clients from across completely different sectors have had to engage in lobbying activity.

This new Regulation of Lobbying Act and the register will shine a light on lobbying – who is engaging in it, with whom and for what purposes.

Fuzion is among those who will submit a return detailing, on behalf of clients, what public officials we have contacted, the subject matter and the intended result of this communication. January 21st, will be our first of three returns that we will file this year.

My advice to each of our relevant clients is to register and to ensure that their submissions are complete and transparent. Of course there is a period of grace of one year to allow the legislation to bed down which means that no penalties will be incurred but our advice is to start as you mean to go on.

You should also know your obligations in relation to the Lobbying Act and if unsure, it would be prudent to register and submit reports relating to activity.

The reputational effect and consequences of not filing – having to answer questions by the media and officials as to why certain correspondence was not logged, is a high price to pay for innocence.

Register now ..

Aoibhinn Twomey